No wedges needed on this one

[Mike Van]

I picked Sat. AM for this job, 2 reasons - The train doesn't run, and my wife could come along [just in case...] My first pic is kind of crappy, the dark looking tree on the left is about a 20" cherry that twisted off 15 ft up last summer & hung in a locust [the lighter colored one on the right] I had to cut.

Both of these are some 75 to 90 ft, as tall as anything else around them. The cherry is on the top of a steep bank, about 30 ft below is the RR tracks. My first thought was put the winch on the cherry, and pull it down. The butt sliding down the bank was my biggest problem, usually no trains on Sat, but I'm no gambler. The locust had to go anyway, so a notch [the way it was being pushed] then I bored the 28" bar right through the tree,

I left a good hinge, the bar is just coming out the other side. I sawed the opposite as you normally would, didn't want to ruin the log [barberchair] or me. About 1 1/2 or 2 inches of wood left, the outside bark just starts to tear & I'm backing out of there. 15 ft away, they're both on the ground. What a crash.

My wife's impressed, no calls to 911, no train de-railment, etc. This pic doesn't show the steep bank too well, but the log could have easily been down on the RR

A little while later, 3 nice locust logs for my mill, a lot of crooked cherry for the woodpile,

and I'm headed home.

I'll be back Monday, cleaning up the tops.

 

[dancan]

Nice pics !

 

[deeker]

Looks good.

What kind of winch system is that???

Kevin

 

[turnkey4099]

I'm curious. What do you mill out of locust. I have only seen 4x4 posts/beams and the like. Is it used for anythign other than firewood and posts/beams?

Harry K

 

[Mike Van]

Kevin, I made my own 3 pt hitch winch starting with an 8000 lb winch off a wrecker. Amazing what it'll pull. Harry, I'm working on an order of 20 2x12x12 ft locust planks a guy wants for raised garden beds. No chemicals in it, locust will last a long time. I've sold a few orders for trailer decking too. Pretty rot proof & hard as stone for good wear-ability.

 

[fsfcks]

Mike, Is that Black Locust or Honey Locust? I am removing a lot of 15 to 20 year Honey Locust trees, and apart from firewood had not come up with a good use for them yet. Of course at that age they are smaller than the one you cut down.

 

[Mike Van]

This would be the black locust. There is some honey around here, it has the huge thorns on it. The bunk on my wagon gear in the pics is from locust too. Pretty tough stuff. The oldtimers said locust would last 2 years longer than stone -

 

[fsfcks]

You don't need to tell me about the Honey Locust thorns! I've had one tire puncture, plus multiple skin punctures. They are very nasty. I also have Osage Orange (Hedge), which last even longer than Honey Locust as fence posts and burns very hot.

 

[056kid]

I always called that yellow locust

 

[Cletuspsc]

Nice pics. . . .a mill by me been buyin locust for 4x4 fence post, last a loooong time. you have any better pics of that winch, i have been thinking bout doin one up and just been lookin for some other ideas and different designs.

 

[Mike Van]

A few pics Cletus -

and

I'll have to get a few more, thats about it for good pics -

 

[tomtrees58]

I always called that yellow locust

that's new to me its black locust i wood mill it will last 2 to 3 hundred years tom trees

 

[Cletuspsc]

I do like that design. . . . I have a fairlead roller off a 440 jd that i think im gonna use. . . . just need the winch, a wreaker winch that that would be sweet.

 

[Mike Van]

Finished the tops of those two trees yesterday, they made a good load on the wagon. Couple of smaller trees added to that got wacked pretty good as these went down. Today, about 100 ft up the line from the locust & cherry was this blown down oak. You can see it in the background of the first pic. averages 2 ft or so in dia. No wedges needed here either.

This first piece is where it tore off the other half [still standing] The rest of it, except for a good section of the top, is on the wagon for the trip home.

This is th 16th load I've taked out of here. By far the heaviest, I could tell the way the tires started to creep coming up the grade & onto the highway. Tomorrow starts 5 more days of rain. :censored: I am so sick of rain.

 

[goatchin]

nice pics and winch system ya got there.

For the winch frame/body...is that a double wide house trailer hitch? serious question because if not i think one would work good as a winch frame

 

[Mike Van]

The winch frame is all channel steel, old steel tower high-line arms. Without measuring, I think the arms are 10" and the body 8". The design, I kind of 'stole' from cable skidders. I thought if the log could swing free & pivot on the winch end [rather than being sucked up tight] it'd be easier to steer the tractor. It does work. A heavy enough load up a grade, you can pull the front wheels up, but only until the load bottoms. Like any of this stuff, you have to learn the machine and use some common sense.